LoNg LoSt LoVe

So sad... our sweet little nephew Preston has been whisked away from us. His parents have become infatuated by the siren song of a little company called Google. Fortunately, it's an internship, but unfortunately, internships often lead to jobs, especially when there's an older brother named John lurking in this process...

We'll miss you guys! Dan, Hailey, and Preston have been our lifesavers, our sanity, our humor, our one source of reliably good meals, and our strength. Find within yourselves the desire to take a job here, Dan. It really could be a good life, right?

tidbits...

Not been great on the blogging front lately. This last month has been a whirlwind of life, really. Every day seems to be packed to the max, and maybe it's because I've got a little less gusto than usual to manage it! However, my 13th week has begun, and just like that, I'm feeling marvelous!

Here's a little bit of what we've been up to lately:

T-Ball, T-Ball, T-Ball. This, I know, is the beginning of a great, long saga in our family's existence. Hopefully, it'll get a little more, (how can we put this politely?), "skilled," as the games continue. Nevertheless, Grant is in seventh heaven. I'll vehemently deny it in later years, so don't quote me, but T-Ball for Grant and his teammates currently consists of: chewing on one's mitt in the outfield while watching airplanes in the sky, fighting over who got the ball first(meanwhile, the other guy's running all the bases), high-fiving the first baseman as one safely reaches first base, and grabbing one's crotch as one stops on each base (no bathrooms, just a bush.) However, to his credit, this kid's got a mean, fast hit, and is a pretty great little runner too. And, he absolutely loves every minute of it.

you can see that Jack would like to participate


The phenomenon of balance. Grant has decided it's time for the training wheels to come off, and is determined to get it, no matter how many falls. He's a perseverant little guy, and despite lots of tumbles and my aching back as I hunch over to help him steady himself, he's making progress. Any tips? Meanwhile, Jack's decided his "baby trike" just won't do, so we got him a little "real" bike with training wheels. It's pretty teeny. He thinks it's the bomb.

Sleepless nights, er days, er...? Nate recently completed several weeks of night float. I've got to hand it to this guy...he can function on hardly anything! He works SO hard. I know that someday, some patient on the operating table will be grateful for his life spared due to Nate's rigorous training. Some rotations are obviously harder than others, and having gone through two traumas gigs (vicariously), I can now claim truthfully that we fly a flag of victory after getting through them. I truly felt pity for poor Nate when he rolled into church last week after (no exaggeration) six hours of sleep in the previous 72, and tried mightily to lift his eyeballs into even a semi-open state. He was pretty much comatose, but I admire his commitment and what that says to our kids by being there.

Ah, New York. Saturday was a great day. My sisters Sarah and Laura and I participated in a Run/Walk for women's cancers together. The cause is great, but so much more meaningful because of Sarah's fight with breast cancer. It was emotional to be in Times Square with 50,000 other women who all wore signs of "in support of" or "in memory of" on their backs. Thank you, Sarah and Laura, for an amazing opportunity. I hope we can do it again.

And of course, a couple of pictures of enjoying the city with the kids. My heart nearly burst with joy when Grant said, "Mom, the whole time I was in your tummy and you and Dad lived here, I was just busting to get out! I love this place!" That's my boy.

crossing the Brooklyn Bridge... becoming a tradition